I
had the honor of hiring Jan Broberg, an amazingly talented actress,
to perform in an experimental audio book I produced many years ago.
Despite the fact that Jan had been kidnapped twice as a child and
abused by an adult male from her Church for many years, she grew into
an amazingly beautiful, talented and well balanced individual. I
enjoyed working with Jan immensely and would continue to hire her
except she is living in Hollywood where she in enjoying a successful
acting career. One of the projects Jan is working on now is a film
adaptation of the book her mother wrote about the kidnapping

No
story about the abuse of a child is easy to read, but Stolen
Innocence was especially trying
due to the way the adults in the case had also been duped by the
perpetrator, Robert Berchtold. The Brobergs met Berchtold family at
their LDS Church and became fast friends. Sadly, Robert Berchtold
used this friendship as a way of getting the Brobergs to trust him
with their daughter.

Even
more astonishing, the Brobergs and the Berchtolds continued to
socialize attend the same Church even after the authorities returned
both Robert and Jan to their homes in Pocatello, Idaho. During the
five weeks Bertchtold held Jan captive in Mexico, he brainwashed her
into thinking she was supposed to bear his child or else her family
would face terrible consequences. Because Jan already been kidnapped
and sexually abused for many weeks, why would she have any reason to
doubt this? As a result, Jan secretly continued to stay in personal
contact with Berchtold.

A
few years later, Berchtold once again kidnapped Jan, this time taking
her to a Catholic school in California. Jan was eventually returned
to her parents several months later and the story about the sexual
abuse was finally revealed to them. Since Broberg came out with her
story, six other women have come forward with claims of abuse at the
hands of Berchtold. Unfortunately, these victims will never get the
justice they seek because Berchtold took his own life when he was
finally sentenced to serve jail time for his crimes against Jan.

The
upside to this tragic tale? Jan was able to heal enough to reveal to
her parents what really happened during the times when Berchtold held
her in captivity. She must be one heck of a resilient person,
because Jan has gone on to have a hugely successful career, appearing
in numerous movies including co-starring with Elijah Wood in Maniac.
To learn more about Jan, check out her Wikipedia page:

Robbins has a gravely voice,
but his enthusiasm, charm and sense of humor make him totally
relatable and likeable. It isn't hard to understand why millions of
people tune in to Robbins for advice on how to become motivated,
excited about life and able to meet great challenges.

Unleash the Power Within
is designed to help people help themselves. My take away was that in
order to make a change, we need to first decide to change.
Robbins' points out that thinking we should change for the
better doesn't work in the long run. Instead, we need to think of
achieving our goals in terms of something we absolutely must
do no matter what. The tricky part comes in training ourselves to do
the latter.

Some of the “breakthrough”
advice by Robbins includes destroying limiting beliefs and getting
ourselves in a “state” where we are most susceptible to positive
thinking. I didn't understand all of what Robbins had to say, but
the part that did stick was the idea that we should remember what we
were thinking about when we made a big change in the past. When I do
this little exercise, I discover that past changes were only made
when I decided they were a must instead of a should.

Downpour.com is now offering
the following titles from Adele Park for sale:

WHEN RADIO
AND POLYGAMY COLLIDE . . . Jitters-A Quirky Little Audio Book

Jitters is a
2011 Audie Award Winner for Multi-Voiced Performance.

For
radio shock jock Nancy Neptune, life is just one big promotion. But
when she's sent to work at a radio station near a polygamist
compound in Utah, trouble comes in triplicate. In a land where one
good wife deserves another, Nancy Neptune hooks up with a drag queen
and a one-armed reporter to rescue a mentally challenged polygamist
who is being abused by one of his nine mommies and neglected by the
other eight.

Jitters-A
Quirky Little Audio Book is
narrated through a series of news reports with the characters
reacting to the events of the day. Jitters
features a cast of 15 actors who tell their stories in comical,
first person narratives.

WHEN
MARIJUANA AND REALITY TV COLLIDE . . Yikes! Another Quirky Audio
Book

When
marijuana enthusiast Blue McKenna suffers an apocalyptic case of
writer's block, reality TV seems like an easy way out. A
conglomerate of kooky contestants invades the polygamist community
of Navel, Utah, to compete in a reality show called Yikes!
Participants include Steven Finch, a loveable stoner who develops a
conspiracy theory involving a rock band called the Rectal Surgeons,
and Randall Smoot, a member of the Gay Mafia.

Yikes!
Another Quirky Audio Book
features a cast of 11 actors who portray the characters in funny,
engaging narratives.

In the eyes of Nadine, a
polygamist and serial bride, nudging her husbands into heaven is a
testament to love. Even Nancy Neptune, a notorious shock jock, is
gobsmacked by Nadine's so- called “Celestial Send-Offs.” Things
go to hell in a hand basket when Nadine offs the wrong guy and is
charged with assisted suicide.

Using witty narratives, a
cast of nice characters transport listeners to Navel, Utah, a place
where voyages to the afterlife are done with God Speed.

Get Jitters, Yikes!
and Gadzooks on Downpour today: http://www.downpour.com/catalogsearch/advanced/bySeries/series/The+Quirky+Audiobook+Series/

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Those who watched the trial
of polygamist cult leader, Warren Jeffs, are probably familiar with
Rebecca Musser, one of the key witnesses. I recently read an account
of Musser's role in the trial in the national bestseller, The
Witness Wore Red, penned by Musser herself.

I live about 40 miles from the “twin”
cities of Hilldale, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona. I see
polygamist women in their prairie dresses on daily basis, wondering
what things must be like in their secretive enclave. In Musser's
book, the curtains are ripped open on this lifestyle, revealing a
disturbing look at a community that marries off girls as young as
twelve to much older men, many of whom are their relatives. Even
more horrifying, several of these young girls were raped in front of
adult men and women from the cult. During the trial of Warren Jeffs,
the jury was able to listen to audio recordings of these crimes, so
there is little doubt they occurred.

One thing that often gets overlooked in
the polygamist saga is the fate of some of the young boys. In order
for the older men to have multiple wives, a alarming number of boys
are kicked out of the community, left to fend for themselves. Utah
residents refer to these victims as “The Lost Boys.” In The
Witness Wore Red, Musser talks about this tragedy, but makes the
observation that the boys aren't “lost,” they are ABANDONED.

I understand there is a great deal of
indoctrination that goes on in cults like the one in
Hilldale/Colorado City. Nonetheless, this doesn't excuse all the
rape, violence and child abandonment that is allowed by members of
both parties in the sect. My personal beliefs are that the women who
stood by watching while people like 12 year old Merrianne Jessop were
raped by Warren Jeffs should have also been made to face charges.
One of the worst perpetrators is Naomie Jeffs, one of an estimated 80
females married to Warren Jeffs. Prior to the trial, Naomie was on
the run with Warren, working as his “scribe.” It was her duty to
write down all of Warren's activities, including the crimes he
committed against women and children. Naomie was with Warren when he
was finally captured by police, but for some strange reason, she was
never made to face charges for her role in these heinous crimes.

I commend Rebecca Musser for standing
up for the victims during the trial against Warren Jeffs and some of
his cronies who gave their young daughters over to Jeffs and took on
child brides themselves. Musser escaped from the cult, only to be
ostracized by her community, including some of her one family
members. One of Musser's brothers wrote his own book, calling her a
liar. I've seen numerous photos of Warren Jeffs kissing girls as
young as 12 years old. The tape recordings of the rapes that took
place in Warren's temple in Texas were authenticated in a court of
law. It seems pretty clear to me who is telling the truth here.

Although reading The Witness Wore Red
was a bit like watching a train wreck in motion, I gave it five stars
on my Goodreads page. Any victim who has the strength and endurance
to stand up to criminals like Warren Jeffs deserves all the respect
and accolades in the world.

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Wednesday, April 1, 2015

There are some people in
this world who go through incredible trials and tribulations, only to
emerge on the other side stronger than ever before. January Jones,
hostess of the nationally syndicated radio show, “Sharing Success
Stories,” has compiled a number of these fascinating stories into a
book called Priceless Personalitieshttp://www.januaryjones.com/priceless.html

About Me

Adele
Park is an Audie Award Winning Author, Producer and Editor. Park
worked as a TV and radio reporter, news anchor and on-air personality
for more than 20 years. In 2008, Park formed Straight to Audio
Productions L.L.C. and opened a recording studio in St. George, Utah.